Mounting assembly for vehicle interior mirror

ABSTRACT

An interior rearview mirror assembly includes a mirror head and a mounting assembly for adjustably mounting the mirror head at an interior portion of a vehicle. The mounting assembly includes a mounting structure that is attachable to an interior portion of the vehicle and includes a mirror mounting element pivotally attached at an end of the mounting structure to establish a mirror ball pivot joint. The attaching portion of the mirror mounting element is configured to attach to a receiving portion of the mirror head via a snap connection and/or a twist connection. The attaching portion of the mirror mounting element, when the mirror mounting element is attached at the end of the mounting structure, is attachable to the receiving portion of the mirror head from a position rearward of the mirror casing and from exterior the mirror casing to attach the mirror head at the mounting structure.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of U.S. provisionalapplication Ser. No. 61/255,192, filed Oct. 27, 2009, which is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of rearview mirrorassemblies for vehicles and, more particularly, to an interior rearviewmirror assembly that is mounted to an interior portion of a vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known to provide a mirror assembly that comprises a mirror casingthat is adjustable relative to an interior portion of a vehicle, such asvia a double ball pivot joint or double ball pivot mountingconfiguration, where the mirror casing and reflective element disposedthereat are adjustable by the driver of the vehicle relative to theinterior portion of a vehicle by pivotal movement about a ball pivot armor configuration so as to set the rearward field of view of thereflective element to a driver's need/preference when the interiorrearview mirror assembly is normally mounted in a vehicle. In someapplications, a mirror assembly may be adjustably mounted to an interiorportion of a vehicle via a double ball pivot joint or double pivotmounting configuration or single ball pivot joint or single pivotmounting configuration.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an interior rearview mirror assemblyhaving a mirror head (such as a mirror head comprising a mirror casingand reflective element) mounted at an interior portion of a vehicle viaa mounting configuration that allows a user (such as the driver of thevehicle equipped with the mirror assembly) to adjust a rearward field ofview of the reflective element via pivotal adjustment of the mirror headabout a pivot joint or ball pivot joint. The mounting configurationincludes a mounting arm attached to or formed with a mounting base thatis attached at the interior portion of the vehicle, with the mountingarm extending from the mounting base and having a mirror mountingelement or ball member pivotally attached thereat. The mirror mountingelement may be configured to attach to the mirror head (such as to themirror casing and/or reflective element assembly) from exterior themirror casing, such as via a snap-together connection or a twist-lock orbayonet or threaded or fastener connection or the like. Optionally, themounting configuration may include a mirror mounting element, such as aball member, that is integrally or unitarily formed, such as byinjection molding, with the bezel of the mirror assembly.

According to an aspect of the present invention, an interior rearviewmirror assembly for a vehicle comprises a mirror head having a mirrorcasing and a reflective element, such as a reflective element positionedat a bezel portion of the casing, and a mounting assembly for adjustablymounting the Mirror head at an interior portion of a vehicle that isequipped with the mirror assembly. The mounting assembly comprises amounting structure that is attachable to an interior portion of theequipped vehicle (such as a mounting base attached at the interiorportion of the vehicle and having a ball member established thereat orsuch as a mounting base attached at the interior portion of the vehicleand having a mounting arm pivotally attached thereto). A mirror mountingelement of the mounting assembly is pivotally attached at an end of themounting structure to establish a mirror ball pivot joint. The end ofthe mounting structure is opposite the interior portion of the equippedvehicle when the mounting structure is attached to the interior portionof the equipped vehicle. The mirror head comprises a receiving portionconfigured to receive an attaching portion of the mirror mountingelement. The attaching portion of the mirror mounting element isconfigured to attach to the receiving portion via a snap togetherconnection or twist lock connection or bayonet connection or the like.The attaching portion of the mirror mounting element, when the mirrormounting element is attached at the end of the mounting structure, isattachable to the receiving portion of the mirror head from a positionrearward of the mirror casing and from the exterior of the mirror casingto pivotally attach the mirror head at the end of the mountingstructure.

The mirror mounting element thus is configured to attach to the mirrorcasing and/or reflective element assembly from the rear of the mirrorcasing and exterior of the casing, such as via insertion into a pocketor receiving portion or connecting portion of the mirror casing. Forexample, the mirror mounting portion, when attached at the end of themounting arm or mounting structure, may be attached to the mirror casingvia a snap together connection or twist lock connection or bayonetconnection or threaded connection or fastener connection or the like.The reflective element is adjustable about the mirror joint to adjust arearward field of view of a driver of a vehicle when the mirror assemblyis normally mounted in the vehicle.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an interiorrearview mirror assembly for a vehicle includes a bezel portion, amirror mounting element and a reflective element disposed at the bezelportion. The mirror mounting element is unitarily formed with the bezelportion (such as by plastic molding or injection molding and such as byinjection molding and over-molding of a base portion of the mirrormounting element about an insert molded ball portion, such as a metallicball portion or the like) and is configured to pivotally attach to amounting arm of a mounting assembly for adjustably mounting the mirrorassembly at an interior portion of a vehicle that is equipped with themirror assembly. The mirror mounting element is disposed at a rear ofthe reflective element when the reflective element is disposed at thebezel portion.

The mirror mounting element may comprise an attachment plate thatencompasses at least a portion of the rear surface of the reflectiveelement, and a ball member may extend from the attachment plate forpivotally attaching the bezel portion to the mounting arm of themounting assembly (optionally, a socket may be formed at the attachmentplate for pivotally receiving a ball member of a mounting arm therein).The mirror mounting element is adjustably joined to a perimeter portionof the bezel portion, and the mirror mounting element is adjustablebetween an open configuration, wherein the reflective element may bereceived in the bezel portion, and a closed configuration, wherein themirror mounting element is disposed at the rear of the reflectiveelement. The mirror mounting element may be pivotally joined to theperimeter portion of the bezel portion via a living hinge.

Therefore, the present invention provides a ball member that may bepivotally attached to the mounting arm of a mounting assembly and thenattached at the rear of the mirror head, such as to the mirror casingand/or reflective element. Thus, instead of a typical attachment platewith an insert molded ball stud (which is typically crimped and themirror housing must pass over the bracket assembly), the ball member ofthe present invention may be larger for a particular mirror application(and may comprise zinc or other die cast material or a glass-fiberreinforced polyamide, such as, for example, a glass fiber 50 percentreinforced polyamide MXD6 commercially available from MitsubishiEngineering-Plastics Corporation under the name RENY® or the like, ifperformance allows) or may be insert molded into a smaller structuralpiece that either snaps or threads or cam-locks or twist locks onto themirror housing and assembles from the outside or rear of the housing.Optionally, the ball member may also or otherwise adhere directly to thereflective element, such as to a foam tape at the rear of the reflectiveelement (such as an electro-optic reflective element or cell) and theadjacent portions of the mirror housing and structural ribs may alsoadhere to the reflective element. Such a construction allows for the useof larger mounts including a mount or ball joint that may have aconnector holding feature on it (that may not fit through a typicalhousing construction). Such a construction also gives a direct transferof adjustment force (when the user grabs the mirror housing to adjustthe mirror rearward field of view, the force travels through the mirrorhousing directly to the ball member).

The present invention also provides a unitarily formed bezel portion andmirror attachment element for attaching the bezel portion and reflectiveelement to a mounting arm of a mirror mounting assembly. The mirrorattachment element may comprise a ball member that may be folded orpivoted about a living hinge at a portion of the bezel to move the ballmember so as to be disposed at the rear of the reflective element afterthe reflective element is received at the bezel. Such a constructionreduces the number of components of the mirror assembly and enhances theassembly process of the mirror assembly.

These and other objects, advantages, purposes and features of thepresent invention will become apparent upon review of the followingspecification in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an interior rearview mirror assembly andmounting structure in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the interior rearview mirrorassembly and mounting structure of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded rear perspective view of the interior rearviewmirror assembly and mounting structure of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is another exploded rear perspective view of the interiorrearview mirror assembly and mounting structure of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 5 is another exploded rear perspective view of the interiorrearview mirror assembly and mounting structure of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the interior rearview mirror assembly andmounting structure of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a ball socket mounting structure inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a side elevation of the ball socket mounting structure of FIG.7;

FIG. 9 is a rear perspective view of a portion of another interiorrearview mirror assembly and mounting structure in accordance with thepresent invention, having a mirror mounting element integrally formedwith a bezel portion;

FIG. 10 is another rear perspective view of the mounting element andbezel portion of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the portion of the interior rearviewmirror assembly and mounting structure of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a front plan view of the portion of the interior rearviewmirror assembly and mounting structure of FIG. 9;

FIG. 13 is an end elevation of the mounting element and bezel portion ofFIG. 10;

FIG. 14 is a rear perspective view of the mounting element and bezelportion of FIGS. 10 and 13, shown with the mounting structure pivoted toan open or non-use position;

FIG. 15 is a top plan view of the mounting element and bezel portion ofFIG. 14; and

FIG. 16 is a side elevation of the mounting element and bezel portion ofFIG. 14.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings and the illustrative embodiments depictedtherein, an interior rearview mirror assembly 10 for a vehicle includesa casing 12, a bezel portion 14 and a reflective element 16 positionedat and at least partially within the casing and/or bezel portion (FIG.1). Mirror assembly 10 is adjustably mounted at an interior portion of avehicle (such as at an in-cabin surface of a vehicle windshield or aheadliner of a vehicle or the like) via a double ball pivot mountingconfiguration or assembly 18 (although optionally, the mirror assemblymay be mounted via a single ball pivot mounting configuration orassembly). Mounting assembly 18 includes a mounting structure comprisingbase portion or mounting base or breakaway stay or mirror mount 20 and amounting arm 22. The mounting arm 22 pivotally attaches to a mirrormounting element 24 (in the illustrated embodiment, the mounting armpivotally receives a ball member of the mirror mounting element) at anouter or rearward or mirror end 22 a of mounting arm 22 and the mountingarm and ball member may be assembled together prior to connection of themirror mounting element to the mirror casing and/or reflective element,whereby the mirror mounting element 24 may be attached to the mirrorcasing and/or reflective element via a snap together or twist lock orbayonet type or threaded or fastener connection or the like, asdiscussed below.

The reflective element 16 and mirror casing 12 are attached to themirror mounting element 24 and thus pivotally mounted at outer orrearward or mirror end 22 a of mounting arm 22 about a mirror ball pivotjoint (such as a ball and socket joint or the like that allows for adriver of the vehicle to which mirror assembly 10 is mounted to adjustthe reflective element vertically and horizontally to adjust therearward field of view of the driver). The opposite or forward or baseend 22 b of mounting arm 22 is adjustably mounted to mounting base 20about a second or adjustable or base joint, such as at a ball portion 20a of mounting base 20, which allows for vertical and horizontaladjustment of the reflective element 16. Mounting base 20 is attached toan interior surface of a vehicle windshield (such as to a mountingbutton or attachment element 26 adhered to the interior surface of thevehicle windshield) and extends downwardly from the attachment location.The mounting base may be mounted to a mounting button or attachmentelement at the vehicle windshield via any suitable construction, such asa breakaway mounting construction, and such as by utilizing aspects ofthe mounting constructions described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,250,148;5,820,097; 5,100,095; 5,058,851; and/or 4,930,742, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Although shown anddescribed as a double ball or double pivot mounting arrangement, aspectsof the present invention may be used in a single ball or single pivotmounting arrangement and/or in other adjustable mounting arrangements,such as the types described in PCT Application No. PCT/US2010/028130,filed Mar. 22, 2010, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference inits entirety.

As shown in FIG. 6, the mirror joint comprises a ball pivot joint orball and socket type joint that allows for 360 degree adjustment of thereflective element relative to mounting arm 22. In the illustratedembodiment, mirror end 22 a of mounting arm 22 comprises a socket thatpivotally receives the generally spherical or partially spherical ballportion 24 a of mirror mounting element or ball member 24, while a baseend 22 b of mounting arm 22 comprises a socket that pivotally receives aball portion 20 a of base portion 20 at the interior portion of thevehicle. Mounting arm 22 and/or mirror mounting element 24 and/or baseportion may comprise molded (such as injection molded) polymericcomponents or may be otherwise formed, depending on the particularapplication of the mirror assembly (and may utilize aspects of themounting assemblies described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,318,870; 6,593,565;6,690,268; 6,540,193; 4,936,533; 5,820,097; 5,100,095; 7,249,860;6,877,709; 6,329,925; 7,289,037; 7,249,860; and/or 6,483,438, and/orU.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005, whichpublished on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/00061008,which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties).

The mirror mounting element 24 includes an attachment portion or baseportion 24 b that is attached to the mirror casing 12 and/or at the rearof the reflective element 16. As shown in FIG. 6, ball portion 24 a maybe insert molded at base portion 24 b of mirror mounting element 24,whereby the ball portion 24 a may comprise a metallic material and thebase portion may comprise a polymeric or plastic material.

In the illustrated embodiment, base portion 24 b of mirror mountingelement 24 is configured to attach to a mirror casing attachment portion12 a, which may comprise a recessed area at the rear of the casing andan aperture 12 b at least partially through the mirror casing 12, fromthe rear of the mirror casing and to be snapped in place at the mirrorcasing to secure the base portion 24 b relative to the mirror casing 12.As shown in FIGS. 3-7, base portion 24 b includes a plurality of lockingor retaining tabs 24 c that extend radially outwardly from the baseportion, while mirror casing attachment portion 12 a includes aplurality of notches or tabs 12 c at aperture 12 b for receiving andretaining tabs 24 c when base portion 24 b is inserted into aperture 12b of mirror casing 12. In the illustrated embodiment, base portion 24 bis generally square or rectangular shaped and the mirror casingattachment portion 12 a comprises a generally square or rectangularshaped receptacle or socket or pocket for receiving base portion 24 b atleast partially therein. As shown in FIGS. 3-5, mirror casing attachmentportion 12 a may include tabs or stops 12 d to limit insertion of baseportion 24 b, whereby the degree of insertion allowed is sufficient fortabs 24 c to engage tabs 12 c at mirror casing 12 to retain ball member24 relative to mirror casing 12. Thus, the base portion 24 b of mirrormounting element 24 (which is pivotally attached to mounting arm 22) maybe inserted into the mirror casing attachment portion 12 a at the mirrorcasing 12 to attach the mirror casing and reflective element to themirror mounting element so as to pivotally attach the mirror casing andreflective element at the mounting arm of the mounting assembly.

Optionally, and desirably, a forward surface 24 d (FIG. 6) of the baseportion 24 b may protrude at least partially through aperture 12 b ofmirror casing 12 and may be adhered or otherwise attached (such as via afoam tape or double sided tape or adhesive or the like) at a rearsurface of the reflective element assembly, such as at an attachmentboard or plate or circuit board disposed at the rear of the reflectiveelement. Although shown and described as providing a snap-togetherconfiguration, the mirror mounting element and mirror casing mayoptionally provide a twist-lock or bayonet type attachment and/or mayutilize fasteners or the like to retain the ball member relative to themirror casing, while remaining within the spirit and scope of thepresent invention.

Also, although shown and described as comprising a ball portion, themirror mounting element or portion may comprise a socket portion forreceiving a ball portion or ball member at the mirror end of themounting arm, while remaining within the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. For example, and with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, a mirrormounting element or ball socket member 24′ may include a socket portion24 a′ and an attachment portion or base portion 24 b′ that is attachedto the mirror casing and/or at the rear of the reflective element, suchas in a similar manner as described above. Socket portion 24 a′ may beintegrally or unitarily molded or formed in the same molding or formingprocess (such as via injection molding or the like) with base portion 24b′ of mirror mounting element 24′. For example, the mirror mountingelement 24′ may be unitarily molded of a plastic or polymeric material,such as an acetal material, a PBT material, a polyolefin material orpolypropylene material and/or the like. Socket portion 24 a′ comprises aplurality of slots 24 f′ therearound to allow for flexing of the arms orportions or tabs 24 g′ of the socket portion 24 a′ when receiving theball member of a mounting arm or mounting base therein, whereby, whenthe ball member is received in socket portion 24 a′, the tabs or arms 24g′ of the socket portion 24 a′ retain the ball member in mountingelement 24′ while allowing for pivotal movement of socket portion 24 a′and mounting element 24′ about the ball member of the mounting arm ormounting base of the mirror mounting assembly or construction.

In the illustrated embodiment, base portion 24 b′ of mirror mountingelement 24′ is configured to attach to the mirror casing attachmentportion, which may comprise a recessed area at the rear of the casingand an aperture at least partially through the mirror casing, from therear of the mirror casing and is configured to be snapped in place atthe mirror casing to secure the base portion 24 b′ relative to themirror casing. The base portion 24 b′ of mounting element 24′ may besimilar in construction and function as the base portion 24 b ofmounting element 24, discussed above, such that a detailed discussion ofthe base portions and mirror casing attachment portions need not berepeated herein. Optionally, and desirably, base portion 24 b′ ofmounting element 24′ may be configured to attach to the same mirrorcasing as base portion 24 b of mounting element 24, such that a commonmounting construction can be used to mount the mirror casing at avehicle, with one mounting element 24′ having a socket portion and thusselected for pivotally attaching the mirror head to a ball member at anend of a mounting arm or mounting base and another mounting element 24having a ball member and thus selected for pivotally attaching themirror head to a socket end of a mounting arm or the like.

Similar to base portion 24 b, discussed above, base portion 24 b′includes a plurality of locking or retaining tabs 24 c′ that extendradially outwardly from the base portion, while the mirror casingattachment portion may include a plurality of notches or tabs at theaperture for receiving and retaining tabs 24 c′ when base portion 24 b′is inserted into the aperture of the mirror casing. In the illustratedembodiment, base portion 24 b′ is generally square or rectangular shapedfor inserting into a generally square or rectangular shaped receptacleor socket or pocket of the mirror casing, such as described above. Thus,the base portion 24 b′ of mirror mounting element 24′ may be insertedinto the mirror casing attachment portion at the mirror casing to attachthe mirror casing and reflective element to the mirror mounting element24′, which includes socket portion 24 a′ that is pivotally attached to amounting base (such as for a single pivot joint or single ball jointmounting assembly) or a ball end of a mounting arm (such as a doubleball mounting arm of a double pivot joint or double ball mountingassembly) so as to pivotally attach the mirror casing and reflectiveelement at the mounting base or arm of the mounting assembly. In theillustrated embodiment, the mounting element 24′ includes a centralpassageway 24 d′ and one or more holes or apertures 24 e′ at its side orsides for a wire harness or wiring to pass through (such as for a singleor double ball mounting assembly with a wire or wires passing throughthe ball member of the base portion or mounting arm) so as to bereceived at or in the mirror casing for electrical connection with aconnector and associated circuitry of the mirror head.

Optionally, and as shown in FIGS. 2-6, the mounting arm 22 (such as thesocket ended mounting arm attached to mirror mounting element 24, asshown, or such as a mounting arm having a ball end for attachment tomirror mounting element 24′ or the like) may have a wire channel orguide element 28 established along the mounting arm (such as via aplastic or polymeric or metallic clip or the like that is established atand at least partially over the outer surface of the mounting arm, suchas by utilizing aspects of the mirror assemblies described in U.S. Pat.No. 6,540,193 and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filedSep. 14, 2005, which published on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. PatentPublication No. 2006/00061008, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties) to guide a wire or cable 30 along themounting arm 22 so as to provide electrical connection between a vehiclewire harness (such as via an electrical connection 32 at the mountingbase) and mirror circuitry or accessories within the mirror casing (suchas electrical circuitry and/or components established at a circuitelement 34 (FIG. 6), such as a printed circuit board or the like,disposed at the rear of the reflective element). The wire or cable 30may be routed along the mounting arm 22 and around ball member 24 a ofmounting element 24 and through an aperture at the rear of the mirrorcasing 12 (such as aperture 12 b at the rear of mirror casing 12 oranother aperture or notch at or near aperture 12 b) so as to enter themirror casing for establishing an electrical connection to circuitryand/or accessories therein. Optionally, the base portion 24 b of ballmember or mounting element 24 may include an electrical connector andmay make electrical connection at a connector in the mirror casing asthe base portion is mechanically attached or fastened or securedrelative to the mirror casing, such as via a snap connection ortwist-lock connection or threaded connection and/or the like.

Therefore, the mounting configuration or mounting assembly of theinterior rearview mirror assembly of the present invention allows forattachment of the mirror mounting portion or element to the mountingstructure (such as a ball or socket portion of a mirror mount attachedat an in-cabin surface of the vehicle windshield such as for a singleball or single pivot mounting assembly, or such as a ball or socket endof a mounting arm pivotally attached at a mirror mount attached at anin-cabin surface of the vehicle windshield or the like such as for adouble ball or double pivot mounting assembly) to establish the mirrormounting joint and subsequent attachment of the mirror mounting portionor element at the rear of the mirror head, such as to the mirror casingand/or reflective element of the mirror head. Thus, the mirror mountingelement or ball member of the present invention may be larger for aparticular mirror application (and may comprise zinc or other die castmaterial or a glass fiber reinforced polyamide, such as, for example, aglass fiber 50 percent reinforced polyamide MXD6 commercially availablefrom Mitsubishi Engineering-Plastics Corporation under the name RENY® orthe like, if performance allows) and/or may be insert molded into asmaller structural piece that either snaps or threads or cam-looks ortwist locks onto the mirror housing and assembles from the outside orrear of the housing (such that the ball member need not fit through thesmaller aperture of the casing, thereby facilitating use of a largerball member at the mirror pivot joint). The mounting configuration ofthe present invention also provides for a universal or common attachment(such as common mirror casing mount configurations and common baseportions of the ball members) while providing different size ballportions or joints (such as by insert molding different sized ballportions into common base portions) for different mirror applications.Such a construction allows for the use of larger mounts including amount that may have a connector holding feature on it (that may not fitthrough a typical housing construction). Such a construction also givesa direct transfer of adjustment force (when the user grabs the mirrorhousing to adjust the mirror rearward field of view, the force travelsthrough the mirror housing directly to the ball member).

Optionally, and with reference to FIGS. 9-16, an interior rearviewmirror assembly for a vehicle includes a bezel portion 114 and areflective element 116 positioned at and at least partially within amirror casing (not shown in FIGS. 9-16) and/or bezel portion. Bezelportion 114 receives the reflective element 116 therein (such as fromthe rear of the bezel portion, and a mirror mounting portion 118 isdisposed at the rear of the reflective element 116 after the reflectiveelement is received in bezel portion 114 (such as shown in FIG. 9).Mirror mounting portion 118 has a ball portion 120 extending therefromfor pivotally mounting the mirror reflective element and mirror casingto a mounting arm of a mounting assembly to pivotally or adjustablymount the mirror reflective element at an interior portion of a vehicle.Mirror mounting portion 118 is integrally or unitarily formed with bezelportion 114 and is pivotable about a joint or living hinge portion 122to pivot the mirror mounting portion 118 between an open position (FIGS.14-16) for receiving the reflective element 116 in bezel portion 114 anda closed or use position (FIGS. 9-13) for mounting the reflectiveelement and bezel portion to the mounting arm of the mounting assembly,as discussed below.

In the illustrated embodiment, mirror mounting portion 118 includes agenerally planar panel portion or attachment plate 118 a that isadjustably or hingedly mounted or attached at bezel portion 114 atliving hinge portions 122. The generally planar attachment plate 118 aincludes a plurality of stiffening ribs 118 b for enhancing thestructural rigidity of the attachment plate 118 a, with the ball portion120 protruding rearwardly from a generally central region of theattachment plate 118 a. Mirror mounting portion 118 includes a pair oftabs or legs 118 c extending from the attachment plate 118 a forengaging an opposite portion of the bezel portion 114 to secure orretain the mirror mounting portion in the use or folded down positionalong the rear of the reflective element when the reflective element isreceived in the bezel portion. Ball portion 120 may be integrally formedwith mirror mounting portion 118 and bezel portion 114 or the ballportion may be insert molded at attachment plate 118 a (such as shown inFIG. 11), while remaining within the spirit and scope of the presentinvention.

Thus, the bezel portion 114 and mirror mounting portion 118 may beunitarily formed and may be joined together at the living hinge portions122. For example, the bezel portion and mirror mounting portion may beformed or molded of a polymeric material, such as a polyolefin material,such as a polypropylene material, and may be injection molded of thepolymeric material. The ball portion 120 may be inserted into the Moldand the mirror mounting portion may be over-molded around a base portion120 a of the ball portion to retain ball portion 120 at mirror mountingportion 118. The bezel portion 114 and mirror mounting portion 118construction thus may be provided in an open configuration, such asshown in FIGS. 14-16, for receiving the reflective element 116 therein.When in the open configuration, the reflective element 116 may bereceived in the bezel portion, with a front surface of a perimeter edgeregion of the reflective element contacting and being encompassed by afront lip 114 a (FIG. 14) of bezel portion 114 and with the perimeteredges of the reflective element being received in and encompassed by aside wall region or portion 114 b of bezel portion 114.

When the reflective element 116 is received in bezel portion 114, mirrormounting portion 118 may be folded or pivoted about living hingeportions 122 to its closed or use position, where the attachment plate118 a is disposed at and along the rear surface of the reflectiveelement, and may function to assist in retaining the reflective elementin the bezel portion 114. When the mirror mounting portion 118 ispivoted to its closed or use position, the tabs 118 c engage and maysnap into a corresponding tab or notch 114 c (FIG. 14) at a side wallregion 114 b of bezel portion 114 to secure the mirror mounting portion118 in its closed or use position relative to the bezel portion andreflective element. In the illustrated embodiment, hinge portions 122are disposed at and spaced apart along an upper perimeter region ofbezel portion 114 (and formed at cutaway regions of the side wall 114 bof bezel portion 114) and notches 114 b are disposed at and spaced apartalong a lower perimeter region of bezel portion 114, with the mirrormounting portion 118 being pivotable about a generally horizontal pivotaxis at the upper perimeter region of the bezel portion. However,clearly the mirror mounting portion may be hingedly attached or joinedto the bezel portion at other perimeter regions of the bezel portion(such as at a side or lower perimeter region) and may engage notches orthe like at other perimeter regions of the bezel portion (such as at aside or upper perimeter region), while remaining within the spirit andscope of the present invention.

When the reflective element is received in the bezel portion and theattachment plate is folded over the rear of the reflective element, thebezel and mirror mounting element construction may be attached to amirror casing. For example, the side wall region of the bezel portionmay be received in a front opening of a mirror casing and may snapped tothe mirror casing and/or otherwise secured relative to the mirror casingto assemble the mirror head or assembly. The mirror casing thus overlapsthe perimeter wall region of the bezel portion and the living hingeelements such that the living hinge elements are not viewable when themirror is assembled.

Optionally, and as shown in FIG. 9, the mirror assembly may include acircuit element 124 (such as a printed circuit board or the like) withcircuitry established thereat for powering and/or controlling one ormore electronic features or accessories associated with the mirrorassembly. In the illustrated embodiment, the reflective element 116comprises an electro-optic mirror reflective element, such as anelectrochromic mirror reflective element or cell (having a frontsubstrate and a rear substrate with an electrochromic medium establishedtherebetween, and with conductive coatings at the surfaces of thesubstrates facing the electrochromic medium, such as utilizing knownaspects of electrochromic reflective elements and/or aspects of theelectro-optic reflective elements discussed below), and the circuitelement 124 includes terminals or connectors 124 a for electricallyconnecting to electrode clips 126 or the like at the conductive surfacesof the reflective element via electrically conductive wires or leads 124b, such as in a known manner or such as by utilizing aspects of themirror assemblies described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,274,501; 7,255,451;7,195,381; 7,184,190; 5,668,663; 5,724,187 and/or 6,690,268, and/or U.S.patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005, whichpublished on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/00061008;Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005, which published on Mar. 9,2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0050018, and/or PCT ApplicationNo. PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 9, 2003 and published Apr. 1, 2004 asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/026633; Ser. No. 12/578,732, filedOct. 14, 2009, which published on Apr. 22, 2010 as U.S. Publication No.2010/0097469; and/or Ser. No. 12/576,550, filed Oct. 12, 2009, now U.S.Pat. No. 8,465,161, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2010/029173, filedMar. 30, 2010, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties. Optionally, the circuit element 124 may be attached tothe bezel portion and/or the mirror mounting portion, whereby the bezeland reflective element subassembly may be readily assembled to orattached to the mirror casing.

Therefore, the mirror assembly of the present invention provides a bezeland integrated attachment plate with an insert molded ball portion. Thebezel and integrated attachment plate uses a living hinge that will becovered by the mirror casing or housing after assembly. Such aconfiguration may increase manufacturing efficiencies by eliminating anextra part while providing the benefits of the mounting ball beingdirectly attached to the attachment plate or mirror mounting portion andreflective element. Such a construction also enhances the assemblyprocesses because the living hinge controls the assembly location of theattachment plate and ball member relative to the bezel portion, and theattachment plate and ball member may be readily snapped into theirdesigned locations by folding the mounting element at the living hingeand snapping the tabs into the notches at the bezel portion.

Optionally, the mirror assembly may comprise an electro-optic orelectrochromic mirror assembly and may include an electro-optic orelectrochromic reflective element. The electrochromic mirror element ofthe electrochromic mirror assembly may utilize the principles disclosedin commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,690,268; 5,140,455; 5,151,816;6,178,034; 6,154,306; 6,002,511; 5,567,360; 5,525,264; 5,610,756;5,406,414; 5,253,109; 5,076,673; 5,073,012; 5,115,346; 5,724,187;5,668,663; 5,910,854; 5,142,407 and/or 4,712,879, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties, and/or asdisclosed in the following publications: N. R. Lynam, “ElectrochromicAutomotive Day/Night Mirrors”, SAE Technical Paper Series 870636 (1987);N. R. Lynam, “Smart Windows for Automobiles”, SAE Technical Paper Series900419 (1990); N. R. Lynam and A. Agrawal, “Automotive Applications ofChromogenic Materials”, Large Area Chromogenics: Materials and Devicesfor Transmittance Control, C. M. Lampert and C. G. Granquist, EDS.,Optical Engineering Press, Wash. (1990), which are hereby incorporatedby reference herein in their entireties; and/or as described in U.S.Pat. No. 7,195,381, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference inits entirety. Optionally, the electrochromic circuitry and/or a glaresensor (such as a rearward facing glare sensor that receives light fromrearward of the mirror assembly and vehicle through a port or openingalong the casing and/or bezel portion and/or reflective element of themirror assembly) and circuitry and/or an ambient light sensor andcircuitry may be provided on one or more circuit boards of the mirrorassembly. The mirror assembly may include one or more other displays,such as the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,530,240 and/or6,329,925, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties, and/or display-on-demand transflective type displays, suchas the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,274,501; 7,255,451;7,195,381; 7,184,190; 5,668,663; 5,724,187 and/or 6,690,268, and/or inU.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005; and/orSer. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005, and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 9, 2003 and published Apr. 1, 2004 asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/026633, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The thicknessesand materials of the coatings on the substrates, such as on the thirdsurface of the reflective element assembly, may be selected to provide adesired color or tint to the mirror reflective element, such as a bluecolored reflector, such as is known in the art and such as described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,910,854; 6,420,036; and/or 7,274,501, and in PCTApplication No. PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 9, 2003 and published Apr. 1,2004 as International Publication No. WO 2004/026633, which are allhereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the interior rearview mirror assembly may comprise aprismatic mirror assembly or a non-electro-optic mirror assembly or anelectro-optic or electrochromic mirror assembly. For example, theinterior rearview mirror assembly may comprise a prismatic mirrorassembly, such as the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,249,860;6,318,870; 6,598,980; 5,327,288; 4,948,242; 4,826,289; 4,436,371; and4,435,042; and PCT Application No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004and published on Dec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO2004/103772, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. Optionally, the prismatic reflective element may comprise aconventional prismatic reflective element or prism or may comprise aprismatic reflective element of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos.7,420,756; 7,274,501; 7,249,860; 7,338,177; and/or 7,255,451, and/or PCTApplication No. PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 19, 2003 and published Apr.1, 2004 as International Publication No. WO 2004/026633; and/or PCTApplication No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and published onDec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO 2004/103772, which areall hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, withoutaffecting the scope of the present invention. A variety of mirroraccessories and constructions are known in the art, such as thosedisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,555,136; 5,582,383; 5,680,263; 5,984,482;6,227,675; 6,229,319; and 6,315,421 (the entire disclosures of which arehereby incorporated by reference herein), that can benefit from thepresent invention.

Optionally, the mirror assemblies and mounting assemblies of the presentinvention may be utilized with an accessory module or windshieldelectronics module or the like, and the mirror assembly may mount to themodule (such as to a mirror mounting button at the rear surface of theaccessory module). The accessory module or windshield electronics modulemay utilize aspects of the modules described in U.S. Pat. Nos.7,538,316; 7,446,650; 7,188,963; 7,004,593; 6,824,281; 6,774,356;6,690,268; 6,250,148; 6,341,523; 6,593,565; 6,428,172; 6,501,387;6,329,925; and 6,326,613, and/or in PCT Application No. PCT/US03/40611,filed Dec. 19, 2003 and published Jul. 15, 2004 as InternationalPublication No. WO 2004/058540, and/or Ireland pat. applications, Ser.No. S2004/0614, filed Sep. 15, 2004; Ser. No. S2004/0838, filed Dec. 14,2004; and Ser. No. S2004/0840, filed Dec. 15, 2004, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the mirror assembly may include user interface inputs, suchas buttons or switches or touch or proximity sensors or the like, withwhich a user may adjust one or more characteristics of the imagingsensor and/or imaging system, such as via the principles described inU.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/091,525, filed Apr. 25, 2008, nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,855,755; and/or Ser. No. 11/239,980, filed Sep. 30,2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,881,496, and/or U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 60/618,686, filed Oct. 14, 2004, which are hereby incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties. Optionally, the images capturedby the imaging sensor or camera may be processed by the control toextract information or data for different applications or systems, suchas described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/239,980, filed Sep.30, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,881,496, and/or U.S. provisionalapplication Ser. No. 60/618,686, filed Oct. 14, 2004, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The interior rearview mirror assembly may include a bezel portion andcasing, such as described above, or the mirror assembly may compriseother types of casings or bezel portions or the like, such as describedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,249,860; 6,439,755; 4,826,289; and 6,501,387; and/orPCT Application No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and publishedon Dec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO 2004/103772; and/orU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/993,302, filed Nov. 19, 2004, nowU.S. Pat. No. 7,338,177; and/or Ser. No. 12/576,550, filed Oct. 12,2009, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,465,161, which are all hereby incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties, without affecting the scope ofthe present invention. For example, the mirror assembly may comprise aflush or frameless or bezelless reflective element, such as the typesdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,626,749; 7,360,932; 7,255,451; 7,274,501;and/or 7,184,190, and/or in PCT Application No. PCT/US2004/015424, filedMay 18, 2004 and published on Dec. 2, 2004, as International PublicationNo. WO 2004/103772; PCT Application No. PCT/US03/35381, filed Nov. 5,2003 and published May 21, 2004 as International Publication No. WO2004/042457; and/or in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628,filed Sep. 14, 2005, which published on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. PatentPublication No. 2006/00061008; and/or Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun.13, 2005, which published on Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No.2006/0050018, and/or in PCT Application No. PCT/US2010/032017, filedApr. 22, 2010, and/or in PCT Application No. PCT/US10/51741, filed Oct.7, 2010, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Optionally, the mirror assembly may comprise a modular mirrorconstruction, and may include back housing portions or the like, such ascap portions of the types described in PCT Application No.PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and published on Dec. 2, 2004, asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/103772, which is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Optionally, a displayscreen may be provided as a modular display screen and may be mountableor installable in the appropriate or suitable mirror casing to provide amodular mirror assembly and display screen. For example, a rear casingor cap portion may include the display screen module including theassociated components, such as the rails and motor and the like, and maybe attachable to a reflective element and/or bezel portion to assemblethe modular mirror assembly. The display screen module thus may beprovided as an optional component or accessory for a vehicle, and may bereadily assembled to a common reflective element and/or bezel portion ofthe mirror assembly.

Optionally, the mirror casing and/or reflective element may includecustomized or personalized viewable characteristics, such as color orsymbols or indicia selected by the vehicle manufacturer or owner of thevehicle, such as the customization characteristics described in PCTApplication No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and published onDec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO 2004/103772; and/orU.S. Pat. Nos. 7,626,749 and/or 7,255,451 and/or U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/243,783, filed Oct. 5, 2005 and published Apr. 20, 2006 asU.S. Publication No. 2006/0082192, which are hereby incorporated hereinby reference in their entireties. For example, the frame or casing ofthe display module and/or the mirror assembly may be selected to have adesired color or combination of colors (or text or print or indiciathereon) to personalize the appearance of the mirror assembly.Optionally, the reflective element may include text or symbols or iconsor other characters or indicia to provide a desired appearance ormessage at the mirror assembly or display screen, such as by utilizingaspects of the mirror assembly described in PCT Application No.PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and published on Dec. 2, 2004, asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/103772; and/or U.S. Pat. No.7,626,749 and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/243,783, filed Oct.5, 2005 and published Apr. 20, 2006 as U.S. Publication No.2006/0082192, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. The icons or characters or indicia may be formed at or nearor on the display screen, or may be provided via graphic overlays whenthe display screen is extended and operating, or may otherwise be formedor provided at or on or in the display screen casing or frame, withoutaffecting the scope of the present invention. Optionally, the bezel orframe color or colors may be selected to be designer colors or may matchor contrast the color of the mirror casing, and/or may have logos oricons or other indicia thereon. Optionally, the display screen modulemay include warnings or other statements or alerts or messages printedor otherwise formed on the bezel or frame portion of the display screenso that the messages or the like are readily viewable when the displayscreen is extended.

Optionally, the mirror assembly and/or prismatic or electrochromicreflective element may include one or more displays, such as for theaccessories or circuitry described herein. The displays may be of typesdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,530,240 and/or 6,329,925, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties, and/or may bedisplay-on-demand or transflective type displays, such as the typesdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,581,859; 7,195,381; 6,690,298; 5,668,663and/or 5,724,187, and/or in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628,filed Sep. 14, 2005, which published on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. PatentPublication No. 2006/00061008; Ser. No. 10/993,302, filed Nov. 19, 2004,now U.S. Pat. No. 7,338,177; and/or Ser. No. 12/091,525, filed Apr. 25,2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,855,755, and/or in PCT Application No.PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 19, 2003 and published Apr. 1, 2004 asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/026633, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Optionally, aprismatic reflective element may comprise a display on demand ortransflective prismatic element (such as described in PCT ApplicationNo. PCT/US03/29776, filed Sep. 19, 2003 and published Apr. 1, 2004 asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/026633; and/or U.S. Pat. No.7,338,177, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties) so that the displays are viewable through thereflective element, while the display area still functions tosubstantially reflect light, in order to provide a generally uniformprismatic reflective element even in the areas that have displayelements positioned behind the reflective element.

Such a video display screen device or module may comprise any type ofvideo screen and is operable to display images in response to an inputor signal from a control or imaging system. For example, the videodisplay screen may comprise a multi-pixel liquid crystal module (LCM) orliquid crystal display (LCD), preferably a thin film transistor (TFT)multi-pixel liquid crystal display (such as discussed below), or thescreen may comprise a multi-pixel organic electroluminescent display ora multi-pixel light emitting diode (LED), such as an organic lightemitting diode (OLED) or inorganic light emitting diode display or thelike, or a passive reflective and/or backlit pixelated display, or anelectroluminescent (EL) display, or a vacuum fluorescent (VF) display orthe like. For example, the video display screen may comprise a videoscreen of the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,370,983; 7,338,177;7,274,501; 7,255,451; 7,195,381; 7,184,190; 6,902,284; 6,690,268;6,428,172; 6,420,975; 5,668,663; 5,724,187; 5,416,313; 5,285,060;5,193,029 and/or 4,793,690, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005, which published on Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S.Patent Publication No. 2006/0050018; Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14,2005, which published on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No.2006/00061008; Ser. No. 12/091,525, filed Apr. 25, 2008, now U.S. Pat.No. 7,855,755; Ser. No. 09/585,379, filed Jun. 1, 2000; and/or Ser. No.10/207,291, filed Jul. 29, 2002, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties.

The video display screen may be controlled or operable in response to aninput or signal, such as a signal received from one or more cameras orimage sensors of the vehicle, such as a video camera or sensor, such asa CMOS imaging array sensor, a CCD sensor or the like, such as the typesdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,760,962; 6,396,397; 6,097,023;5,877,897; and 5,796,094, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/534,632, filed May 11, 2005, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties, or from one or more imaging systems ofthe vehicle, such as a reverse or backup aid system, such as arearwardly directed vehicle vision system utilizing principles disclosedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,760,962; 5,670,935; 6,201,642; 6,396,397;6,498,620; 6,717,610 and/or 6,757,109, which are hereby incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties, a trailer hitching aid or towcheck system, such as the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,005,974,which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, acabin viewing or monitoring device or system, such as a baby viewing orrear seat viewing camera or device or system or the like, such asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,877,897 and/or 6,690,268, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a videocommunication device or system, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.6,690,268, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety, and/or the like. The imaging sensor or camera may be activatedand the display screen may be activated in response to the vehicleshifting into reverse, such that the display screen is viewable by thedriver and is displaying an image of the rearward scene while the driveris reversing the vehicle.

Optionally, the mirror assembly and/or mounting structure may include aforward facing imaging sensor or camera that may be mounted at a circuitelement or substrate supported at the mirror assembly or mounting baseor the like. The camera may include a sensor chip or imager chip orsensing element established at the circuit board or element, with a lensbarrel extending from the chip in the direction of the forward field ofview of the sensor. Such cameras are typically used in the likes ofautomatic headlamp control, lane departure warnings systems, trafficsign recognition systems and/or the like (such as by utilizing aspectsof the vision systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897;6,498,620; 5,670,935; 5,796,094; 6,396,397; 6,806,452; 6,690,268;7,005,974; 7,123,168; 7,004,606; 6,946,978; 7,038,577; 6,353,392;6,320,176; 6,313,454; and/or 6,824,281, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties). Optionally, it isenvisioned that the mirror assembly and/or mounting assembly may supportany suitable or appropriate or selected sensor or accessory, such as aradar sensor, a photosensor, a lidar sensor or the like, while remainingwithin the spirit and scope of the present invention. Optionally, forexample, the sensor may utilize aspects of the sensors and/or systemsdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897; 6,498,620; 5,670,935;5,796,094; 6,396,397; 6,806,452; 6,690,268; 7,005,974; 7,123,168;7,004,606; 6,946,978; 7,038,577; 6,353,392; 6,320,176; 6,313,454; and/or6,824,281, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US08/51833, filed Jan. 24,2008 and published Oct. 23, 2008 as International Publication No WO2008/127752, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2010/25545, filed Feb. 26,2010 and published Sep. 2, 2010 as International Publication No. WO2010/099416, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

Optionally, the mirror assembly may include or may be associated with acompass sensor and circuitry for a compass system that detects anddisplays the vehicle directional heading to a driver of the vehicle.Optionally, an integrated automotive “compass-on-a-chip” may be disposedin a cavity of the mounting base of the mirror (or within the mirrorhousing or in an attachment to the mirror mount or elsewhere within themirror assembly such as to the rear of the video screen or to the rearof the mirror reflective element) and may comprise at least twomagneto-responsive sensor elements (such as a Hall sensor or multipleHall sensors), associated A/D and D/A converters, associatedmicroprocessor(s) and memory, associated signal processing andfiltering, associated display driver and associated LIN/CAN BUSinterface and the like, all (or a sub-set thereof) created or disposedor commonly established onto a semiconductor chip surface/substrate orsilicon substrate, such as utilizing CMOS technology and/or fabricationtechniques as known in the semiconductor manufacturing arts, andconstituting an ASIC chip, such as utilizing principles described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 7,329,013; 7,370,983 and/or 7,004,593, and/or U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/906,519, filed Oct. 18, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No.8,282,226, and/or Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005, whichpublished on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/00061008,which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties,which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties,and/or such as by utilizing aspects of an EC driver-on-a-chip such asdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,480,149, which is hereby incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety. The ASIC chip may be small(preferably less than approximately a two square centimeter area, morepreferably less than approximately a 1.5 square centimeter area, andmost preferably less than approximately a one square centimeter area orthereabouts) and readily packagable into the mirror assembly (or a feedfrom such a compass-on-a-chip may be provided to the mirror assemblyfrom a compass-on-a-chip packaged elsewhere in the vehicle cabin remotefrom the mirror assembly such as in an instrument panel portion or inroof console portion). Such large scale integration onto the likes ofthe silicon substrate/chip can allow a compass functionality to beprovided by a relatively small chip, and with appropriate pin out orelectrical leads provided as is common in the electrical art.

Optionally, a compass chip or compass module may be disposed at an upperend of the mounting base of a mirror assembly, such as at an upper orconnecting end of a wire management element connected to or extendingfrom the mounting base of the mirror assembly, such as by utilizingaspects of the mirror systems described in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 12/578,732, filed Oct. 14, 2009, which published on Apr. 22, 2010 asU.S. Publication No. 2010/0097469, which is hereby incorporated hereinby reference in its entirety. The wire management system may include awire management element or channel or cover element, such as byutilizing aspects of the wire management systems or elements describedin U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005,which published on Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No.2006/00061008; and/or U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,510,287 and/or 7,370,983, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The compass chip may be in communication with a compass display, whichmay provide a display region at the reflective element, and whichincludes ports or portions, which may comprise icons, characters orletters or the like representative of only the cardinal directionalpoints, such as, for example, the characters N, S, E, W, formed oretched in the reflective film coating of the reflective element (andforming a transparent window therein), such as via techniques such asdisclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,882,565 and/or7,004,593, which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in theirentireties. Optionally, however, reflective element may comprise atransflective or display on demand (DOD) reflective element, and thecompass display may be a display on demand (DOD) type of display, suchas disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,195,381; 6,690,268;5,668,663 and 5,724,187, which are hereby incorporated by referenceherein in their entireties, without affecting the scope of the presentinvention.

Optionally, the compass system and compass circuitry may utilize aspectsof the compass systems described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,370,983; 7,329,013;7,249,860; 7,004,593; 6,928,366; 6,642,851; 6,140,933; 4,546,551;5,699,044; 4,953,305; 5,576,687; 5,632,092; 5,677,851; 5,708,410;5,737,226; 5,802,727; 5,878,370; 6,087,953; 6,173,508; 6,222,460; and/or6,513,252, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18,2004 and published on Dec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO2004/103772, and/or European patent application, published Oct. 11, 2000under Publication No. EP 0 1043566, and/or U.S. patent application Ser.No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005, which published on Mar. 23, 2006 asU.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/00061008, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The compasscircuitry may include compass sensors, such as a magneto-responsivesensor, such as a magneto-resistive sensor, a magneto-capacitive sensor,a Hall sensor, a magneto-inductive sensor, a flux-gate sensor or thelike. The sensor or sensors may be positioned at and within a baseportion or mounting base of the mirror assembly so that thesensor/sensors is/are substantially fixedly positioned within thevehicle, or may be attached or positioned within the mirror casing. Notethat the magneto-responsive sensor used with the mirror assembly maycomprise a magneto-responsive sensor, such as a magneto-resistivesensor, such as the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,255,442;5,632,092; 5,802,727; 6,173,501; 6,427,349; and 6,513,252 (which arehereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties), or amagneto-inductive sensor, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,878,370(which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety), or amagneto-impedance sensor, such as the types described in PCT PublicationNo. WO 2004/076971, published Sep. 10, 2004 (which is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety), or a Hall-effectsensor, such as the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,278,271;5,942,895 and 6,184,679 (which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties). The sensor circuitry and/or thecircuitry in the mirror housing and associated with the sensor mayinclude processing circuitry. For example, a printed circuit board mayinclude processing circuitry which may include compensation methods,such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,546,551; 5,699,044;4,953,305; 5,576,687; 5,632,092; 5,677,851; 5,708,410; 5,737,226;5,802,727; 5,878,370; 6,087,953; 6,173,508; 6,222,460; and 6,642,851,which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. The compass sensor may be incorporated in or associated witha compass system and/or display system for displaying a directionalheading of the vehicle to the driver, such as a compass system of thetypes described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,924,212; 4,862,594; 4,937,945;5,131,154; 5,255,442; 5,632,092; and/or 7,004,593, and/or PCTApplication No. PCT/US2004/015424, filed May 18, 2004 and published onDec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO 2004/103772, which areall hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the mirror assembly and/or any associated user inputs may beassociated with various accessories or systems, such as, for example, atire pressure monitoring system or a passenger air bag status or agarage door opening system or a telematics system or any other accessoryor system of the mirror assembly or of the vehicle or of an accessorymodule or console of the vehicle (which may be incorporated at orassociated with the mounting assembly and/or mirror assembly), such asan accessory module or console of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos.6,877,888; 6,824,281; 6,690,268; 6,672,744; 6,386,742; and 6,124,886,and/or, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US03/03012, filed Jan. 31, 2003and published Aug. 7, 2003 as International Publication No. WO03/065084, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US03/40611, filed Dec. 19,2003 and published Jul. 15, 2004 as International Publication No. WO2004/058540, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US04/15424, filed May 18,2004 and published on Dec. 2, 2004, as International Publication No. WO2004/103772, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Optionally, the user inputs of the mirror assembly may comprise anysuitable types of buttons or switches for controlling oractivating/deactivating one or more electrical accessories or devices ofor associated with the mirror assembly. The mirror assembly may compriseany type of switches or buttons, such as touch or proximity sensingswitches, such as touch or proximity switches of the types describedabove, or the inputs may comprise other types of buttons or switches,such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,527,403; 7,360,932 and/or7,253,723; and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/576,550, filedOct. 12, 2009, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,465,161, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties, or such asfabric-made position detectors, such as those described in U.S. Pat.Nos. 6,504,531; 6,501,465; 6,492,980; 6,452,479; 6,437,258; and6,369,804, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. For example, the inputs may comprise a touch or proximitysensor of the types commercially available from TouchSensorTechnologies, LLC of Wheaton, Ill. The touch or proximity sensor may beoperable to generate an electric field and to detect the presence of aconductive mass entering the field. When a voltage is applied to thesensor, the sensor generates the electric field, which emanates throughany dielectric material, such as plastic or the like, at the sensor.When a conductive mass (such as a person's finger or the like, or metalor the like) enters the electric field, the sensor may detect a changein the field and may indicate such a detection. Other types of switchesor buttons or inputs or sensors may be incorporated to provide thedesired function, without affecting the scope of the present invention.

Optionally, the user inputs or buttons may comprise user inputs for agarage door opening system, such as a vehicle based garage door openingsystem of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,396,408; 6,362,771;7,023,322; and 5,798,688, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties. The user inputs may also or otherwisefunction to activate and deactivate a display or function or accessory,and/or may activate/deactivate and/or commence a calibration of acompass system of the mirror assembly and/or vehicle. The compass systemmay include compass sensors and circuitry within the mirror assembly orwithin a compass pod or module at or near or associated with the mirrorassembly. Optionally, the user inputs may also or otherwise compriseuser inputs for a telematics system of the vehicle, such as, forexample, an ONSTAR® system as found in General Motors vehicles and/orsuch as described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,862,594; 4,937,945; 5,131,154;5,255,442; 5,632,092; 5,798,688; 5,971,552; 5,924,212; 6,243,003;6,278,377; and 6,420,975; 6,477,464; 6,946,978; 7,308,341; 7,167,796;7,004,593; and/or 6,678,614, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US03/40611,filed Dec. 19, 2003 and published Jul. 15, 2004 as InternationalPublication No. WO 2004/058540, and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US03/308877, filed Oct. 1, 2003 and published Apr. 15, 2004 asInternational Publication No. WO 2004/032568, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the mirror assembly may include one or more otheraccessories at or within the mirror casing, such as one or moreelectrical or electronic devices or accessories, such as antennas,including global positioning system (GPS) or cellular phone antennas,such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,552, a communication module,such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,688, a blind spot detectionsystem, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,929,786 and/or 5,786,772,transmitters and/or receivers, such as a garage door opener or the like,a digital network, such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,575, ahigh/low headlamp controller, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,796,094 and/or 5,715,093, a memory mirror system, such as disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 5,796,176, a hands-free phone attachment, a video devicefor internal cabin surveillance and/or video telephone function, such asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,760,962 and/or 5,877,897, a remote keylessentry receiver, lights, such as map reading lights or one or more otherlights or illumination sources, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.6,690,268; 5,938,321; 5,813,745; 5,820,245; 5,673,994; 5,649,756;5,178,448; 5,671,996; 4,646,210; 4,733,336; 4,807,096; 6,042,253;5,669,698; 7,195,381; 6,971,775; and/or 7,249,860, microphones, such asdisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,243,003; 6,278,377; and/or 6,420,975;and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/529,715, filed Mar. 30, 2005;and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US03/30877, filed Oct. 1, 2003 andpublished Apr. 15, 2004 as International Publication No. WO 2004/032568,speakers, antennas, including global positioning system (GPS) orcellular phone antennas, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,552, acommunication module, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,688, avoice recorder, a blind spot detection system, such as disclosed in U.S.Pat. Nos. 7,720,580; 7,038,577; 6,882,287; 5,929,786 and/or 5,786,772,transmitters and/or receivers, such as for a garage door opener or avehicle door unlocking system or the like (such as a remote keylessentry system), a digital network, such as described in U.S. Pat. No.5,798,575, a high/low headlamp controller, such as a camera-basedheadlamp control, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,796,094 and/or5,715,093, a memory mirror system, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,796,176, a hands-free phone attachment, an imaging system orcomponents or circuitry or display thereof, such as an imaging and/ordisplay system of the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,526,103;7,400,435; 6,690,268 and 6,847,487; and/or U.S. provisional applicationSer. No. 60/618,686, filed Oct. 14, 2004, and/or U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/239,980, filed Sep. 30, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,881,496, avideo device for internal cabin surveillance (such as for sleepdetection or driver drowsiness detection or the like) and/or videotelephone function, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,760,962 and/or5,877,897, a remote keyless entry receiver, a seat occupancy detector, aremote starter control, a yaw sensor, a clock, a carbon monoxidedetector, status displays, such as displays that display a status of adoor of the vehicle, a transmission selection (4wd/2wd or tractioncontrol (TCS) or the like), an antilock braking system, a road condition(that may warn the driver of icy road conditions) and/or the like, atrip computer, a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) receiver (suchas described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,124,647; 6,294,989; 6,445,287;6,472,979; 6,731,205; and/or 7,423,522, and/or an ONSTAR® system, acompass, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,924,212; 4,862,594;4,937,945; 5,131,154; 5,255,442; and/or 5,632,092, and/or any otheraccessory or circuitry or the like (with all of the above-referencedpatents and PCT and U.S. patent applications being commonly assigned toDonnelly Corporation, and with the disclosures of the referenced patentsand patent applications being hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties).

Optionally, the mirror assembly (such as at the mounting base, which maybe fixed relative to the vehicle windshield) may include an imagingsensor (such as a forward facing imaging sensor or camera that has aforward field of view through the vehicle windshield) that may be partof or may provide an image output for a vehicle vision system, such as aheadlamp control system or lane departure warning system or objectdetection system or other vehicle vision system or the like, and mayutilize aspects of various imaging sensors or imaging array sensors orcameras or the like, such as a CMOS imaging array sensor, a CCD sensoror other sensors or the like, such as the types described in U.S. Pat.Nos. 5,550,677; 5,670,935; 5,760,962; 5,715,093; 5,877,897; 6,922,292;6,757,109; 6,717,610; 6,590,719; 6,201,642; 6,498,620; 5,796,094;6,097,023; 6,320,176; 6,559,435; 6,831,261; 6,806,452; 6,396,397;6,822,563; 6,946,978; 7,038,577; and 7,004,606; and/or U.S. patentapplications, Ser. No. 11/315,675, filed Dec. 22, 2005 and publishedAug. 17, 2006 as U.S. Patent Publication No. US-2006-0184297A1; Ser. No.10/534,632, filed May 11, 2005 and published Aug. 3, 2006 as U.S. PatentPublication No. US-2006-0171704-A1; Ser. No. 12/091,359, filed Jun. 10,2008; and/or Ser. No. 12/377,054, filed Feb. 10, 2009; and/or PCTApplication No. PCT/US2006/041709 filed Oct. 27, 2006 and published May10, 2007 as PCT Publication No. WO 07/053404; and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2007/75702, filed Aug. 10, 2007 and published Feb. 28, 2008 as PCTPublication No. WO 08/024639, which are all hereby incorporated hereinby reference in their entireties. The sensor may include a lens elementor optic between the imaging plane of the imaging sensor and the forwardscene to substantially focus the scene at an image plane of the imagingsensor. The imaging sensor may comprise an image sensing module or thelike, and may utilize aspects described in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 10/534,632, filed May 11, 2005; and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2006/041709, filed Oct. 27, 2006 and published May 10, 2007 asInternational Publication No. WO 07/053404; and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2003/036177 filed Nov. 14, 2003 and published Jun. 3, 2004 as PCTPublication No. WO 2004/047421, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties.

Optionally, the accessory or accessories, such as those described aboveand/or below, may be positioned at or within the mirror casing and maybe included on or integrated in a printed circuit board positionedwithin the mirror casing, such as along a rear surface of the reflectiveelement or elsewhere within a cavity defined by the casing, withoutaffecting the scope of the present invention. The user actuatable inputsand/or touch sensors and/or proximity sensors and displays describedabove may be actuatable to control and/or adjust the accessories of themirror assembly/system and/or overhead console and/or accessory moduleand/or vehicle. The connection or link between the controls and thedisplay screen device and/or the navigation system and/or other systemsand accessories of the mirror system may be provided via vehicleelectronic or communication systems and the like, and may be connectedvia various protocols or nodes, such as BLUETOOTH®, SCP, UBP, J1850, CANJ2284, Fire Wire 1394, MOST, LIN, FlexRay™, Byte Flight and/or the like,or other vehicle-based or in-vehicle communication links or systems(such as WIFI and/or IRDA) and/or the like, or via VHF or UHF or otherwireless transmission formats, depending on the particular applicationof the mirror/accessory system and the vehicle. Optionally, theconnections or links may be provided via various wireless connectivityor links, without affecting the scope of the present invention.

Changes and modifications in the specifically described embodiments maybe carried out without departing from the principles of the presentinvention, which is intended to be limited only by the scope of theappended claims as interpreted according to the principles of patentlaw.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An interior rearview mirror assembly for avehicle, said interior rearview mirror assembly comprising: a mirrorhead comprising a mirror casing and a reflective element; a mountingassembly for adjustably mounting said mirror head at an interior portionof a vehicle that is equipped with said mirror assembly; wherein saidmounting assembly comprises a mounting structure that is attachable toan interior portion of the equipped vehicle; wherein said mountingassembly comprises a mirror mounting element pivotally attached at anend of said mounting structure to establish a mirror ball pivot jointand wherein said end of said mounting structure at which said mirrormounting element is attached is opposite the interior portion of theequipped vehicle when said mounting structure is attached to theinterior portion of the equipped vehicle; wherein said mirror casingcomprises a non-circular receiving portion configured to receive anon-circular attaching portion of said mirror mounting element; whereinsaid non-circular attaching portion comprises at least one locking tabprotruding radially outward therefrom; wherein said attaching portion ofsaid mirror mounting element is configured to attach to said receivingportion via at least one of (a) a snap connection, (b) a twistconnection and (c) a bayonet connection; wherein said receiving portionof said mirror casing includes at least one stop that, when saidattaching portion engages said at least one stop as said attachingportion is inserted into said receiving portion, limits insertion ofsaid attaching portion into said receiving portion of said mirrorcasing; wherein, with said attaching portion received in said receivingportion and engaged with said at least one stop, said at least onelocking tab engages a locking tab of said mirror casing to limitretraction of said attaching portion from said receiving portion; andwherein said attaching portion of said mirror mounting element, whensaid mirror mounting element is attached at said end of said mountingstructure, is attachable to said receiving portion of said mirror casingof said mirror head from a position rearward of said mirror casing andfrom the exterior of said mirror casing to pivotally attach said mirrorhead at said end of said mounting structure.
 2. The interior rearviewmirror assembly of claim 1, wherein said mirror mounting elementcomprises a ball portion and said attaching portion, and wherein saidball portion is pivotally received at said end of said mountingstructure.
 3. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 2, whereinsaid ball portion is insert molded at said attaching portion.
 4. Theinterior rearview mirror assembly of claim 3, wherein said mountingstructure comprises a mounting base attachable to the interior portionof the equipped vehicle and a mounting arm attached at said mountingbase, and wherein said end of said mounting structure comprises an endof said mounting arm opposite said mounting base, said end of saidmounting arm receiving said ball portion of said mirror mounting elementtherein to pivotally attach said mirror mounting element at said end ofsaid mounting arm.
 5. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 4,wherein said mounting arm is pivotally attached at said mounting base toprovide a double pivot mounting assembly.
 6. The interior rearviewmirror assembly of claim 5, wherein said mounting base is attachable toa mirror mounting button adhesively attached at an in-cabin surface of awindshield of the equipped vehicle.
 7. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 1, wherein said mounting structure comprises a mirrormount attachable to a mirror mounting button adhesively attached at anin-cabin surface of a windshield of the equipped vehicle, and whereinsaid mirror mounting element is pivotally attached at said end of saidmirror mount.
 8. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 1,wherein said mirror mounting element comprises a ball receiving portionand said attaching portion, and wherein said ball receiving portion ofsaid mirror mounting element pivotally receives a ball member of saidend of said mounting structure to pivotally attach said mirror mountingelement to said mounting structure.
 9. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 8, wherein said ball receiving portion and saidattaching portion of said mirror mounting element are unitarily moldedtogether in the same molding process.
 10. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 1, wherein said attaching portion of said mirrormounting element is configured to attach to said receiving portion ofsaid mirror head via a snap connection.
 11. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 1, wherein said attaching portion of said mirrormounting element is configured to attach to said receiving portion ofsaid mirror head via a twist connection.
 12. The interior rearviewmirror assembly of claim 11, wherein said twist connection comprises atwist lock connection.
 13. The interior rearview mirror assembly ofclaim 1, wherein said mirror mounting element comprises a passagewaytherethrough for routing an electrically conductive wire therethrough toelectrically connect said electrically conductive wire to circuitry ofsaid mirror head.
 14. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 1,wherein said mounting structure is attachable to a mirror mountingbutton adhesively attached at an in-cabin surface of a windshield of theequipped vehicle.
 15. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 1,wherein said mounting structure comprises a mirror mount attachable tosaid mounting button.
 16. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim1, wherein said attaching portion of said mirror mounting element isconfigured to attach to said receiving portion of said mirror head via afastenerless connection.
 17. The interior rearview mirror assembly ofclaim 16, wherein said attaching portion of said mirror mounting elementis configured to attach to said receiving portion of said mirror headvia a twist connection.
 18. The interior rearview mirror assembly ofclaim 17, wherein said twist connection comprises a twist lockconnection.
 19. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 1,wherein said attaching portion comprises at least two locking tabsprotruding radially outward from opposite sides of said non-circularattaching portion, and wherein, with said attaching portion received insaid receiving portion and engaged with said at least one stop, said atleast two locking tab engage respective locking tabs of said mirrorcasing to limit retraction of said attaching portion from said receivingportion.
 20. The interior rearview mirror assembly of claim 19, whereinsaid receiving portion of said mirror casing includes at least two stopsdisposed at opposite sides of said receiving portion to limit insertionof said attaching portion into said receiving portion.
 21. The interiorrearview mirror assembly of claim 20, wherein said stops limit insertionof said attaching portion into said receiving portion such that, whensaid attaching portion is inserted into said receiving portion andengaged with said stops, said attaching portion is spaced from and notengaged with said reflective element.
 22. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 21, comprising circuitry established on a circuitboard disposed in said mirror casing.
 23. The interior rearview mirrorassembly of claim 22, wherein said circuit board is disposed in saidmirror casing such that said circuit board is remote from said attachingportion when said attaching portion is inserted into said receivingportion.